Brought Together by a Lap Dance
by Copper's Mama
Summary: Max/Alec fic, from "Gill Girl". Imagine if there had been more to that scene in the strip bar, and Max had actually made it look like she worked there? In the end, Max has to choose between Alec and Logan. Please read and review!


_..._

_A Max/Alec fic. _

_..._

_Disclaimer: Nope, don't own Dark Angel. I'm not that awesome. _

_..._

_A/N: Well, I was watching "Gill Girl", and as the avid Logan-hater that I am, I couldn't help but use it as an opportunity to throw Max and Alec together again. _

_Basically, after saying "goodbye" to Logan at the hospital, Max needs to do something to clear Logan out of her mind ... enter Alec. I added a bit more to the scenes, as I think we all would have been happier if there had been a little more action than hair ruffling and cheek rubbing ... _

_Alright, let's get on with it, shall we? _

_I hope you guys like this, I know I'll love writing it. _

_As always, please read and review, I live for feedback! _

...

"Is this a bad time?" his voice asked from the doorway to the bathroom.

Max looked up, pulling her head away from Original Cindy's. "What do you want?" she asked him, hating how _he_ had to see her like this ... so weak and lost.

"I need you to come somewhere with me, Max," he told her, rubbing his brow.

He looked genuinely worried about something, but Max couldn't see it. All she could think about was what was happening with her and Logan, and how she was going to figure out the right thing to do. She knew what she had to do ... she knew she couldn't be with Logan. And while a large part of her was sad at that realization, another part of her - one she'd never really acknowledged - was relieved. She could finally move on.

"Can't you see I'm getting ready for a bath?" Max asked him, just wanting to be left alone.

Alec let out a dry chuckle, stating, "Funny; women in water, seems to be the theme of my evening. Come on."

Max watched him walk out of the bathroom, noticing that he hadn't given her the option to say no. It irritated her, it frustrated her, but at the same time, it was nice to have something else to focus on. She sighed at Original Cindy, offering her the bathwater she'd gathered and moving to her room to get dressed.

...

Max made her way around the back of the club, trying to figure out how the hell she'd let him talk her into doing this. She could have worked out a distraction to get into the club, hell she could have snuck in through an open window or vent or something ... anything but this.

_You were gone the second he gave you that once-over_, a voice inside her head told her.

Her eyes widened as she walked, wondering where the hell that had come from. Before she could think on it in depth, she'd arrived by the back entrance. She watched the "management" turning girls away left, right and center, bemoaning herself internally for what she was about to do. The entire thing was degrading and pathetic ... but there was a defenseless transgenic captured and on display in there, so she sucked it up and strutted forward, her fingers gripping the hem of her shirt as she caught the guy's eye. She laid on the eye flirting as thick as she could, working her genetically manufactured booty to its limits. Luckily she had full control of her gag reflex.

Once she got inside she immediately scanned the room for the tank of water, spotting it easily. It broke her heart to see her like that, and she knew she had to do whatever it took to get her out of there. She felt bad for getting annoyed with Alec when he'd come to get her ... if it weren't for him, this girl might not have had a chance.

Max spotted a girl coming out of a back room of some sort, and made her way through, finding the other side of the tank. Once she tapped on the glass and showed the transgenic her barcode, it was easy to communicate with her and let her know they were going to do whatever it took to get her out. Everything would be okay, she would make sure of it. All she had to do was find Alec and set things in motion.

She came back out and searched the crowd, expecting to find him waiting somewhere for her. To her annoyance - but not so much surprise - she found him sitting down in a chair, ogling some dancer who was shaking her hips for him. Something within her flared to life, practically growling with seething frustration and anger. Max rolled her eyes, making her way over to them.

Alec saw her coming and his face fell immediately, deciding to send the girl - Veronica? Virginia? - away to give Sketchy and Normal a dance before Max could blow a gasket on him.

"This is how you rescue a mermaid?" she asked, shocked that he'd actually had the nerve to smack the girl's ass when she walked away.

Alec reached out, grabbing her hand.

"Hey!" Max ground out, trying to pull back, but he was stronger, and he hauled her into his lap.

"White's got someone here," he explained to her, seeing her demeanor change immediately.

"Where?" she asked, scanning the room.

Alec answered, "Two o'clock. See him? No drink, no girls; he's been casing the place the entire time."

Max scoped him out, watching him wave off a buxom beauty. "Yep. He looks pretty shady to me." It didn't occur to her to wonder why she was so at ease sitting on his lap. A second later, the man turned to look their way, and they immediately shifted their focus, looking back at each other.

"Okay, now would be a good time to look like we belong here, huh?" Alec suggested, placing one hand around her back while the other sat on her thigh.

Max looked at him for a moment before adjusting her legs and bringing a hand to his hair, moving her fingers around in quick, half-hearted circles.

"Wow, Max, you uh, you done this before?" he asked jokingly.

"Shut up," she replied, looking anywhere but at him. She casually turned back to see if he was still watching, noticing that he'd looked away. "Why isn't he making his move?" she wondered vocally.

"Too many people around," Alec figured. "He's just waiting 'til closing." Max's hand on his hair was becoming a bit of a nuisance, but he was enjoying having her in his lap.

"Or back-up," Max countered, keeping her eyes on the target.

Finally he couldn't take it anymore, reaching up to grab her hand and pull it off his head. "Look, either way, we're not getting her out of here alive as long as he's around."

Max sighed, looking back at the girl. "How'd she end up in a dump like this, anyway?"

"I don't know, I heard fishermen snagged her," Alec offered.

Max began moving her hand back and forth across his chest distractedly, not really paying attention to what she doing or how she was doing it. "She probably won't last long out of the water. Once we get her out, we're gonna have to get her back into the ocean - fast." Her hand made it's way up to his face, moving faster than she figured was appropriate, but it wasn't like she did this every day.

"Maybe the ocean's not the way to go. I mean, she caught once - what are you doing?" Alec asked her, staring at her hand and moving his head away.

"Fitting in!" Max exclaimed, glaring at him and trying to hide her embarrassment. When he didn't reply she left her hand on his neck for a moment before rubbing it around again.

At first it felt good for Alec, having her touching him in such a tender place, but then she began moving her hand quickly again, and it lost the magic. Though he'd be lying if he said it didn't send shivers through him every time she stroked his ear.

"She's Manticore," Max continued, wishing she was better at the whole 'pretending to be sexy' thing. "She won't let it happen again."

"Still, though ... beautiful girl like that, all by herself out there in the ocean. She's gonna get lonely," Alec stated.

Max turned her head, clearly affronted. "Can we concentrate on coming up with a plan?" she wondered, moving her hand back up to his hair.

"I'm thinking," Alec promised.

"You're talking!" Max retorted, moving her hand in quick circles.

"I can do both." Alec informed her.

"I doubt that!"  
"Well, you just lost your tip!" he told her, fully expecting the smack on the head he received for that comment.

After a while she leaned back against him, watching the girl staring out at the crowd.

"It's a shame," Alec began, switching topics.

"It's sick is what it is," Max corrected, wishing she could something than sit there and play with Alec's hair. Even though it was quite soft. _Wonder what the rest of him feels like?_ That voice inside her head was back again, but before she could ask herself what the hell was going on, Alec spoke again, pulling her from her thoughts.

"No, I mean, her all alone out there in the ocean, nothing but fish to talk to ..." He trailed off, not really having a larger point than that.

Max hardened her eyes, thinking he was working out a pick-up line. "Give it up, Alec. The two of you would never work." _Just like you and Logan ... but you and Alec, on the other hand. You'll never get over Logan if you don't start seeing other people ... he could be the one._ Max was seriously contemplating having Dr. Carr run some tests on her to make sure she was functioning properly. Something had to be out of whack.

"Yeah, you're right," Alec stated, his grips on Max's back tightening almost imperceptibly. "I always do this. I always go for the ones I can't have." He wondered if she caught his double meaning.

"Figures," Max commented, her voice sharp and cut off.

_Clearly not,_ Alec thought, pulling her hand off his head with a forced chuckle. "You should talk. I mean, hello? You, Logan, the virus ..."

Max turned on him quickly, grabbing the sides of his jacket. "Don't! Don't even." She would have said more, but Sketchy and Normal came over, letting Alec know they were out of money. Normal was just as shocked to see Max as she was to see him - though in his case, he was probably mortified to see her sprawled all over his "golden boy". Sketchy grinned at the two of them as he left, pointing to the two of them together and smiling wider.

"Can this night get any worse?" she wondered.

Alec glanced back over to where the guy was sitting, and as if on cue, he looked right back at him, Alec turned to face Max, pulling her around by her hips so that she was straddling him. She started to demand an explanation, but he cut her off, telling her, "We're not exactly being convincing, Maxie. He's about a hair away from making us, so unless you want this to turn into a shoot-out/bloodbath, I'd say it's time to get serious."

Max stared at him, wanting to check to see if the guy was really watching them, but she knew that if she did and he was, they would definitely be busted. She clenched her jaw, staring down at her co-worker and former "breeding partner", wondering if she could actually bring herself to give him a believable lap dance.

That pesky little voice inside of her popped up again, but she silenced it immediately, barely able to focus with her own thoughts going on in there, never mind whatever invader had tried taking over. She steadied her breathing, placing her knees on either side of Alec's legs and stretching out her arms to lay them out beside his head. Her eyes were clouded with seriousness and what was intended to be fake desire, but as she began to move her hips to the rhythm of the music playing in the bar, she started questioning just how fake her desire for him was. This felt almost too convincing, even to her.

Alec stared up at her, watching each and every movement that she made with appreciation and wonder. This sort of thing was definitely not taught at Manticore, but with how nervous she'd been before, he couldn't picture Max going out to learn how to do a sexy dance. This was all her. That only made him want her more.

She carefully lowered her head so that her mouth was next to his ear, tossing her hair over once shoulder as she brought her right hand up to caress his other ear, whispering silkily, "Is this better?"

Alec was at a loss for words, swallowing the saliva that had accumulated in his mouth. "Um ... yeah."

Max smiled, feeling her body let go and just move with it ... literally. She let her hands trail away from his hand, moving back against the chair until her elbows were next to her head, effectively placing her upper body much closer to him. She noticed him squirming, and chanced a look through her curtain of hair to see if White's man was still watching them. He wasn't. She could move off of him now ...

"What's, uh ... going on over there?" Alec asked, his voice strained. "He still looking our way?"

Max hesitated a moment before answering. "Yeah. I dunno, maybe he's still not buying it."

Alec watched her bring her head back around to look at him, his eyes boring into hers. "Well ... I guess we're not being convincing enough."

Max nodded, wondering where he was going with that.

A moment later her internal question was answered, as Alec brought one hand off of her hips to cup her cheek, sliding back until it sunk into her hair and gripped the back of her neck. He angled her head towards him, bringing her closer slowly, giving her a chance to back out. She didn't, and they each took a small gasp of breath before their lips connected.

Max expected it to feel weird or awkward ... maybe even repulsive. Anything to snap her out of whatever daze she seemed to have fallen into. But it didn't ... it felt wonderful. Peaceful. Perfect.

Max's hips, which had been hovering above Alec's, now dropped the remaining distance so that she was settled on top of him completely. She had to bite back a whimper when she felt him stirring against her, clear evidence of just how she affected him. For a moment, all the things that she should be thinking about left her mind, and she melted into the kiss, parting her mouth for him.

No Logan, no mermaid in need of rescue, no 'possible' government henchman across the room ... just lips and tongue, and heaving and sighing, and wondering why she hadn't done this sooner.

Alec's other hand traveled up her back, twisting into her hair and deepening the kiss.

A 'working' girl walked up beside them, scoffing at Alec. "Hey, hands off unless the girl says otherwise," she commented, clearly thinking that Max was new and unaware of the rules.

Max broke away from the kiss to glare at the girl beside her before replying. "_The girl_ says otherwise. Now scram!"

The girl took off, leaving Max and Alec to their own devices once more. Max glanced at Alec's lips, ready to pick up where they'd left off, when he suddenly spoke, "Check it out. Something's going on."

Max turned her head to the tank, noticing a man tapping on the glance and staring at the mermaid. She saw some drunk jackass making obscene gestures and telling the girl to dance for them. She stood up from Alec's lap, ready to tear the guy a new one, but Alec stood up behind her, pressing himself against her back and holding onto one of her arms.

"Easy, easy." he told her, in what she assumed was meant to be a calming voice.

Max glared at the men around the tank, wanting to make each and every one of them suffer for being such disgusting, arrogant assholes, but then she remembered White, and the man they'd been watching. She turned her head to see him moving across the room, making a beeline for the tank. "He's making his move!" Max noted, surprised and confused. _Why now, and not before or later?_ she wondered.

"Okay, go get him," Alec relented, letting go of her arm.

Max moved to get in the guy's path, doing whatever it took to protect her 'family'.

...

They carried the suffocating merman into the building and over to the elevator, praying to get him into some water in time. The water bottles they'd been using to douse him were long-since gone, and they didn't know how much time he had left. Max berated herself internally for not knowing that the man had been there to help her, not hurt her, and because of them, White had captured her.

The elevator ride took forever, and Max found herself cursing Logan for living in the Penthouse suite. Just before the elevator stopped she heard her pager go off from within her pocket. Pulling it out of her pocket, she saw that it was Logan.

_Great timing,_ she thought when the elevator dinged and the doors opened.

They moved quickly into the apartment, the chirping of her pager making their presence known. Max spotted Alec by his desk when they walked by, stating, "I'll hit you back in a sec."

Alec said, "Sorry," as he walked by, both for the water that was leaking on the floor, and for the fact that less than an hour ago he'd been making out with Logan's sort-of girlfriend.

They took him to the shower as quick as they could, setting him down and turning the water on. It poured over him, and his body looked a little bit better ... but not enough.

Max heard the others come up behind them, but paid them no mind; her only concern was the merman and his safety. "Can you last like this for a little while?" she asked him.

He nodded, and Max took that as a good sign.

"We're gonna find her, don't worry," Max told him, meaning every word of it. "It's gonna be okay."

...

They followed the newly revived merman to the water, wondering wear he was leading them.

"So, Max ... about before," Alec began.

Max sighed, trying to remain focused on their mission. "Not now."

Alec flickered his attention between her and the transgenic they were following. "No time like the present. Besides, I get the feeling we're not gonna get much alone time in the next few hours."

Max looked at the rocks around them, hoping they would reach their destination quickly. She hadn't even officially ended her relationship with Logan yet, she wasn't sure if she was ready to start a new one with Alec.

"Look, I'm not even sure what that was back there," Max admitted. "I mean, you kinda caught me in this at a really bad time. Some stuff's been happening with me and Logan, and I dunno ... maybe I let that screw with my judgment."

Alec stared ahead, finding himself increasingly annoyed. "I get it ... so you decide to get back at Logan for not being able to touch you, by making out with me?"

Max's shoulders sagged, looking over at him in exasperation. "That's not what I meant."

Alec shook his head. "You know what Max, when are you gonna see that we're not meant to be with them?"

"Them who?"

"Civilians," Alec informed her. "Ordinary people ... we're no match for them, and you should know better than anyone how easy it is to get them killed because of us."

Max chewed on her lip, looking out at the water. "Logan's not ... we're not -"

"Whatever Max," Alec interrupted, quickening his pace. "Let me know when you decide which one of us you'd rather string along."

They walked for another few minutes before they arrived at the end of the path.

"I don't know, Max. This doesn't look like White's secret facility to me," Alec commented, feeling like he'd wasted his time.

The merman kept walking, heading for the water.

"Hey, where you going?" Max asked him, but she received no answer.

"What's it look like?" Alec answered. "See, I told you. He's not gonna die for anybody. He's going right back into the water; he's gonna swim away, meet a nice flounder somewhere ..."

They watched him crouch down by an old tire, seeming to be digging around inside of it.

"Now what?" Alec questioned. They walked over behind him to see several round, almost glowing ball-shaped things within the water in the tire, protected by some sort of tarp. "What are those?" he asked, feeling more than slightly disgusted.

"Eggs," Max answered, slight awe in her voice as she turned her head to smile at Alec.

"He's not gonna eat those, is he?" Alec sorely hoped the answer was no.

Max shook her head, gaining a larger picture of their situation. "No. They're hers." She looked at the merman, placing her hand on his arm. "She's your mate, right?"

The merman smiled, making that squealing noise that she couldn't understand.

Alec removed the hand he'd placed over his mouth, no longer needing to prevent himself from vomiting.

"We're gonna get her back," Max promised.

Alec looked down at the eggs, wanting to say something to Max; not really sure what he was going to say, but knowing that something needed saying. He wanted to let her know that he had her back, that he would help her out with whatever she needed, despite the fact that she was still hung up on Logan. But he was cut off by the ringing coming from his jacket pocket. "Yeah?" he answered. The voice that replied was one he really didn't want to hear just then. "Logan," he said with an 'of course' tone of voice. "Uh-huh," he spoke when Logan reported what he'd found out about White. "I'll say one thing for ya," Alec stated, forcing himself not to literally bite his tongue, "you got great timing." With that he hung up the phone, glancing at Max.

"He find White's place?" she asked.

"Of course he did," Alec replied bitterly. "He always does stuff like that." In all honestly, Alec knew he could have found White just as fast ... though his way probably would have entailed dangling himself as bait, and then having Max follow White's crew back to wherever their base camp was. Knowing Max though, she probably wouldn't see it as brave, and more as desperate thrill-seeking.

Max smiled at the merman. "Come on. Let's go get your girl."

...

All in all, it had been a successful mission. Alec had been shot, but he would live, and the couple had made it out and were reunited with their babies. Their newly hatched babies.

Asha was currently examining Alec's shoulder, causing him to flinch when she got too close to the wound. "We gotta get this thing cleaned up," Asha commented.

Max looked at Alec, thinking she probably should have been a bit more considerate of his pain. "Thanks," she told him. "For, you know ... helping out today."

Alec nodded, biting back to urge to tell her that if he hadn't come to get her, she wouldn't have even known about the captured mermaid.

"Wanna go say goodbye?" she asked him, wondering why she didn't just come out and ask Asha to quit touching him.

Alec thought back to everything that had happened over the last 24 hours, from his making out with Max to her confusion over him and Logan. Glancing at Asha, he saw a perfect opportunity to give Max a reprieve from having to make a choice. "I think we need to get this thing cleaned up."

Max watched as Asha and Alec began to leave, Asha moving her hand to wrap around his back, and something inside of her snapped. "You know what, I can take care of that. Seems the least I can do since I'm the one that told you to cover me and all," Max stated in a rush. "Asha, don't even worry about it. You stay, keep Logan company ... we'll see you later." She barely gave the girl a chance to argue, sliding close enough to the two of them that the blonde had to step away.

"Um, okay," Asha commented, wondering why Max was suddenly on-board with her spending time with Logan. "See ya."

Max walked Alec away from them, making their way back to her bike. They'd only bothered to grab one, not wanting to be late meeting the other transgenics at the waterfront.

Alec grinned the entire way to the bike, glancing at Max from time to time.

"What?" Max asked in a huffy voice, knowing that he was about to rub in her face that she'd been jealous of Asha, and hadn't wanted the two of them spending 'alone' time together.

Alec shrugged, instantly regretting it as his arm protested the movement. "Nothing. Just in a good mood, that's all."

Max knew there was more to it than that, but mounted her bike in silence, noticing that he slid closer than necessary to her when he climbed on.

...

They arrived at Max's apartment just over ten minutes later, making their way up the stairs. Original Cindy left a note on the counter saying that she was staying over at a 'friend's' place, and would be back later the next day if she didn't see her at work.

Max was slightly put-off by the idea of her and Alec alone in her apartment, but she quelled the feeling, moving into healing mode. "Lose the shirts," she commanded, motioning to Alec's upper-body layers.

Alec tweaked an eyebrow at that, smirking.

Max rolled her eyes. "So I can get at the wound, genius. Get your mind out of the gutter."

Alec grinned even wider, but completed the 'request'. He noted that Max looked away when he slid off his undershirt, revealing perfectly toned abs, pectoral, biceps ... pretty much perfect everything. He'd never been shy of his body, but he'd also never quite enjoyed it as much as he was now.

Max soaked a clean cloth in hydrogen peroxide, cleaning the wound entirely so that it wouldn't get infected. She used rubbing alcohol on the outside of the wound, finally drying it carefully with another cloth and covering it with gauze, securing it tightly. "There," Max announced once she was finished. "Good as new."

Alec nodded, looking down at her handiwork. "Thanks."

Max shrugged. "No biggie."

She had begun to turn away, but Alec grabbed her arm with the good hand, making her look at him once again. "I mean it, Max. Thanks."

Max looked at him uncertainly, feeling her heart rate increasing and her body temp spiking ever so slightly. "For what?"

Alec glanced down at the floor before meeting her eyes head-on. "For not making me go home with Asha."

Max furrowed her brow, looking at him with a miffed expression on her face. "No one was forcing you to -"

Alec cut her off, pulling her a little bit closer. "That's not what I meant, Max. I meant ... thanks for choosing to spend time with me tonight."

Max understood what he was saying, and every survival instinct in her was telling her to pull her arm away and run as fast as she could. "It's no -"

"No biggie," Alec finished. "Except, it kinda is."

Max opened her mouth to say something, but Alec cut her off again. "Look, I'm not saying we should get married, here," he told her, feeling her squirm a little. "All I'm saying is: I like you, I'm pretty sure you like me. So why dance around this for a year? I mean, maybe you and Logan will work this virus thing out, maybe you won't. I'm not saying we're soul mates, Maxie ... but I wanna give us a chance. And if that means you kicking my ass for the rest of our lives, then so be it." Alec sighed, looking down at Max's hand. He slid his hand down from her arm to clasp hers in his. "Just tell me that you don't like me like that, and I'll leave."

Max tried to get the words out, but she couldn't. Whatever her feelings were, they were definitely more than dislike and annoyance. Something had changed.

Alec dipped his head at her silence. "Okay."

Max met his eyes slowly. "Okay?"

Alec nodded, knowing that no more words needed to be said. He moved from where he sat on the stool by her counter, standing up so that he was pressed almost completely against her. When she didn't try to stop him, he lowered her head, pressing his lips against her soft ones.

Max responded after a very short second, sliding her hands up Alec's bare chest to grip his hair. Her fingers dragged over his scalp, massaging him in a way that made him purr in response.

"Mmm," Alec mumbled, amazing at how different the feeling was here, as opposed to in the strip bar. He wrapped his own arms around her, teasing the skin under her clothes as he started to remove her own jacket.

Max embraced the feeling of freedom that raced through her body as she and Alec steadily began to remove more clothing. They didn't make it to the bedroom the first time, and Max found herself grateful that OC wouldn't be there all night. She planned on making as many memories as possible that night, no longer worrying about Logan or which one she should choose. It wasn't about choosing ... she didn't want men fighting over her, and she didn't want to be torn between the two of them. It was a few weeks before she voiced her realization that Alec was better for her than just about anyone she'd ever been with. Not just because they were both transgenics - which opened up her eyes in certain areas that had made her say 'wow' a bit excessively - but because no matter what she was thinking, or what she was doing, he was right there with her. He didn't try to talk her out of crazy ideas, or worry about her incessantly. He worked with her, offered his physical and tactile assistance, and never once told her to 'be careful'. It was an unspoken sentiment. But maybe the most important thing that she valued about their relationship ... there was no waiting or wondering. They saw what they wanted and went after it. And together, they found themselves discovering life in a new, wonderful way.

Plus, the sex was effing phenomenal.

...

_The end. _

_Well, what did you guys think? _

_I tried to stick to the script as much as possible, while adding in my interpretation of what Alec and Max might have been thinking. Honestly, was I the only one that caught the resentment in Alec's voice when he answered the phone and Logan told him he found White's base of operations? I hope not ... _

_Reviews are appreciated, flame if you must, but constructive criticism is much more useful. _

_Until next time ...! _


End file.
